Article holding sheet and package



Jan. 17, 1967 s. P. CRANE I ARTICLE HOLDING SHEET AND PACKAGE Filed May 22, 1964 NVENTOR. 50mue1 Crane United States Fatent G 3,298,512 ARTICLE HOLDING SHEET AND PACKAGE Samuel P. Crane, 1 Warwick Road, Great Neck, N.Y. 11023 Filed May 22, 1964, Ser. No. 369,375 17 Claims. (Cl. 206-65) This invention relates to sheets designed to hold elongated articles and to packages using such sheets.

For packing, shipping and storing fragile and easily damaged articles such as the branches of artificial Christmas trees made of somewhat resilient aluminum foil fringe, the holders for individual branches have heretofore taken the form of a glued paper tube, sheath or sleeve, or of a glued paper honeycomb provided with branchreceiving cells.

Sleeves require individual handling with resulting relatively high labor costs. To count the branch-filled sleeves in a package of such sleeves is difficult and time consum ing. Similarly, difficulties have arisen in controlling the exact number of branches in a package going to make up the full branch complement of an artificial tree. For a large tree having two hundred or more branches of various lengths, it is seldom in practice that the required exact number of branches goes into the package, especially when the branches arein sets of different lengths. Honeycombs, while adapted for mass handling, are open to the same objection, control of the exact number of branches in the cells being difficult and costly.

Furthermore, both sleeves and honeycombs require gluing to hold them together. They are imperforate and completely conceal the needles of thebranches held therein so that should the branches have been inserted into such sleeves or honeycombs in the wrong direction, they are quite likely to be stored in that condition until too late to remedy the fault. In that case, the needles become permanently distorted and the vital good appearance of the branches and the tree is destroyed.

The present invention is therefore directed to the provision of an economical and efficient slitted and accordion pleated glueless article holding sheet which when unfolded to a predetermined extent and width, provides without a count, the exact number of elongated compartments, passages, pockets or channels of the requisite different lengths required properly to hold the articles such as the branches of an artificial Christmas tree, the sheet having numerous spaced apart parallel openings when in use along the entire length of each pocket or passage, through which openings the branch needles are visible and through which the branch core rod is accessible should it become necessary to withdraw reverse or replace branches inserted into the pockets in the wrong direction.

The invention is further directed to the provision of a sheet so slitted or shredded, and creased or pleated that about half of the sheet stands out laterally from the initial plane of the sheet in one direction and the other half stands out in the opposite direction to form pockets or passages for the reception of an article, the sheet being foldable in the manner of an accordion pleated sheet to a width approximately double the width of a pleat therein.

The invention is further directed to the provision of :an accordion pleated sheet having rows of slits crossing alternate pleats or folds to form partly severed bands arranged in said rows, and having the unslit areas, bands or strips of sheet material between slits outstanding laterally in opposite directions to form alternate peaks and troughs ,in each row or pleat, whereby the sheet may befolded compactly by the user, and need merely be partly unfolded foruse and when so unfolded providing the required number .of rows ofelongated openings, passages or pockets ,forthe reception of branches or the likearticles.

The invention is further directed to the provision of a package employing such pleated self-measuring sheets for holding accessibly and properly the required number of each set of artificial tree branches or other fragile elongated articles of different lengths and for cushioning such articles when packed within a suitable shipping or storage container.

The various objects of the invention will be clear from the description which follows and from the drawings, in which FIG. 1 is a fragmentary perspective view of one form of the partly shredded holding and packing sheet showing the rows of wedge shaped partly folded peaks and troughs and the unslitted but creased folded areas or hands separating the rows.

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary partial vertical sectional view taken on the line 22 of FIG. 1 and a partial elevational view showing a tree branch held in one row. and showing the right hand part of the sheet folded and compacted into a small compass.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of FIG. 2, but showing the branch broken off beyond the row.

FIG. .4 is a view similar to FIG. 1 of a modified form of the sheet wherein the peaks and troughs of adjacent rows of bands are staggered and overlap to provide the required unslitted sheet material between adjacent rows.

FIG. 5 is a view similar to FIG. 2, the section being taken on the line 55 of FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 is a plan view similar to FIG. 3 of the sheet of FIGS. 4 and 5.

FIG. 7 is a plan view of the sheet indicatinghow it may be cut to form two separate sheets varying in length at different points to take articles of different lengths.

FIG. 8 is a similar view indicatinga modified form of cut in the sheet for the same purpose.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a package of partly unfolded slitted and pleated sheets similar to those of FIG. 8 and of different heights showing the Christmas tree branches of correspondingly different heights segregated therein, the cover of the shipping container of the package being omitted to expose the interior.

In general, the sheet as 10 or 11 of FIGS. 7 and 8 is suitably weakened by creases or folds along parallel lines which will be termed folds hereinafter, so that the sheet may readily be collapsed, accordion pleated or compactly folded when not in use as a holder, or for delivery to the user. For use as a holder, each pleat of the sheet is shreddedby a row of slits across the folds at suitable intervals the rows extending from one side edge 12 to the other side edge 13 of the sheet, the material in the form of bands between pairs of adjacent slits being pushed laterally out of the initial plane of the sheet in opposite directions to form alternating peaks and troughs in each row. The peaks or upstanding wedges. of the bands in each row close spaced apart portions of the top halves of a pocket or passage in said row between the main folds, and the oppositely directed bands constituting depending troughs close bottom half but spaced apart portions of the pocket, there being folds or creases in one direction at the vertices -or apices of the peaks and in the opposite direction at the apices of the troughs enabling proper folding and unfolding of the sheet in the manner of an accordion bellows.

Inthatembodiment of the invention shown by way of example, the articlevholder is made of a flexible and foldable sheet of a single thickness of-material such as paper, fiber, plastic or the like capable of supporting its own weight without excessive distortion and not so limp as and collapsible, and rapidly unfoldable into the required peaks and troughs, suitable paper is preferred for'the sheet material.

In that form of the invention shownin FIGS. 1-3, the sheet is preferably accordion pleated, the pleating folds generally extending across the entire Width of. the sheet betwen the side edges 12 and 13 htereof and being parallel and spaced apart preferably equal distances along the length of the sheet. The main folds 14 are continuous and extend, face or point in the same general direction, namely, downwardly as viewed in FIG. 2. Only selected spaced apart short fold portions as 15 of the intermediate discontinuous slitted fold in any row between a pair of the main folds 14, extend downwardly in the row and face in the direction of the fold 14. The remaining fold portions .16 of the intermediate fold of the row, which portions alternate with the fold portions 15, face or point generally upwardly or are creased or prefolded in a direction opposite to that of the folds 14 and 15.

Such reverse folding of the alternating portions 15 and 16 of the intermediate fold in each row becomes possible by reason of the parallel slits 20a, 20b and 20c and the like through the sheet. The slits are shorter than the width of a half pleat and stop short of the main folds 14 on each side thereof, and preferably extend in a direction longitudinally of the sheet across the intermediate fold in both directions to break up said intermediate fold into the portions 15 and 16. There results one unslit area or band 21 on one side of the main fold 14 extending throughout the width of the pleat between said fold and the adjacent aligned ends 23 of the entire row of slits, said row reaching from one side edge 12 of the sheet to the other side edge 13. A second similar unslit area or band 24 is formed on the other side of the main fold 14 between said fold and the aligned ends 25 of the slits in the adjacent row. 7 When the sheet is partly unfolded from the compact collapsed position thereof shown in part in FIGS. 2 and 3, or the sheet is partly folded or pleated from a stretched or fully expanded position thereof, the upstanding flat sides as 26, 27 of the peaks taper upwardly toward each other to meet in the upwardly pointed partial edge folds 16 and the depressed flat sides 29, of the troughs taper downwardly toward each other to meet in the downwardly pointed edge folds 15. The side 26 of the peak is coplanar with and merges with the area 24 and the side 27 similarly is coplanar with and merges with the area 21 Since the peaks and troughs alternate in each row, the result of the automatic formation of the peaks and troughs by the projection of the pleat bands laterally in opposite directions respectively, is an elongated pocket 28 extending between the side edges of the sheet and capable of receiving an elongated article.

In addition to the main folds 14 and the short alternating folds 15 and 1 6, each trough has a set of additional folds between and at the ends of the paired slits 20a, 20b and the like, to aid in forming the trough. The normally flat side 29 of the trough meets the unslit area 24 in an upwardly extending fold 31 while the other side 30 meets the unslit area 21 in an upwardly extending fold 32. In any row of peaks and troughs forming the pocket or passage 28, there are consequently five sets of folds in the form of. the invention now being described. One of the folds is the main fold 14 and the others being relatively short spaced apart but initially aligned folds in sets of partial folds. 'Each such set of folds points or faces in a direction opposite to that in which the adjacent sets of folds of each side thereof faces, thereby making it possible to close the pleats or fold the sheet as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. The overall width of the collapsed sheet approximates the length of the longest slits 20a, 20b and the like.

It has been indicated that the sheet is adapted to hold, protect and compact the disassembled branches of an artificial Christmas tree. Such branches usually comprise a core rod 35 and'an aluminum or other flexible fringe wound helically around the rod so that the fringe fingers 36 stand out from the core. Such fingers are resilient and if not subjected to excessive stresses, resume the proper shapes and positions thereof when the stress there-on is relieved. The branch is compacted into a relatively small overall diameter for shipping and storage purposes with the fingers lying along the core rod and slightly twisted in a manner which is now known. The fingers are visible around one-half of the passage or pocket 28 through the spaced apart trough-formed openings 37 and around the other half of the pocket through the peak-formed openings 33 when the branch is inserted into the pocket by pushing the leading bare end of the rod in a straight path into the pocket between the peaks and troughs. The pressure of the fingers thereon distends the sides 26, 27 of the peaks and 29, 3d of the troughs, the resistance of said sides causing the fingers to bend toward the rod 35 in the direction in which the fingers are initially tilted, without undue stresses developing. For a branch of uniform finger desity and size, the sides of the peaks are opened by the branch fingers into a position wherein they are perpendicular to each other at the fold 16. The sides 29 and 30 of the troughs are similarly made perpendicular to each other as best seen in FIG. 2.

It will be understood that neither the corrseponding peaks nor the corresponding troughs in the various rows need necessarily be aligned with those of the other rows in the manner in which the corresponding peaks are aligned longitudinally in the sheet 10 of FIGS. 1-3 and that the bands constituting the peaks and troughs may be arranged in various ways relatively to each other and to those in the other rows; also that the main folds need not necessarily be continuous but may be interrupted or broken and consist of a multiplicity of aligned short folds and optional continuations thereof joining the short folds.

In that form of the sheet shown in FIGS. 46 and designated by the numeral 11, the slits 40a and 40b extend completely across the row 41 of peaks 42 and troughs 43 to the discontinuous row-separating folds as 4-4 and 45 along the respective sides of the row 41. However, the slits 46a and 46b of the adjacent rows 47 on the respective sides of the row 41 are staggered relatively to the slits 40a and 4% being preferably about half way between the ends of the slits 40a and 49b, and the ends of the other slits in adjacent rows being similarly staggered. The ends of all of the adjacent slits in adjacent rows are aligned transversely in the direction across the sheet for uniformity and ease of manufacture and said ends all terminate preferably at a row-separating fold 44 or 45.

It will be seen that in the operative partly expanded or unfolded position of the sheet 11 shown best in FIG. 5, as well as in the compacted position shown at the right hand part of the figure, half of each side 50 of a peak 42 is generally coplanar with the side 51 of a trough 52 in the adjacent row 47. The other half of the side 50 is angularly related to the noncorresponding halves of the sides 53 of the peaks in the adjacent rows on both sides of the interrupted fold 44 or 45 thereby making it possible for the peak sides to fold upon each other about such fold and for the trough sides similarly to fold upon each other. The unslitte-d areas 54 at the transition of each peak into a trough, which areas separate the relatively short sections of the row-separating folds from each other, also hold the peaks and troughs together regardless of the fact that the slits extend the full width of each row right up to the folds 44 and 45 and may even cross said folds without completely cutting the peaks and troughs apart, in manner which will now be obvious and needs no further illustration.

In distinction from a conventional accordion pleat, the sheet 10 or 11 folds into multiple thicknesses of material, half of which is on one side of a row-separating fold and the other half on the other side whereby the overall'width of the compacted sheet is equal to the length of the longest set of slits in any row of such slits. In the sheet 11, for an article holding pocket of the same size as that of the sheet 10, the width of a pleat or the distance between folds 44 and 45 is decreased.

When the sheet or 11 is completely unfolded or when it is folded to make a predetermined angle at the apices ofthe peaks and troughs, a selected number of counting branches before or after packing.

Especially'important is this feature in connection with trees in which the lengths of the branches are graduated or several sets of branches are of unequal length. As shown in .FIG. 7 for example, the slitted and creased sheet is out along the inclined line 55 to form pockets increasing gradually in length for corresponding branches which increase (or decrease) in the same manner. Since the number of branches determines the length of the sheet, as many different lengths of pockets and branches as may be found necessary to make up the full complement of the artificial tree may readily be predetermined by the shape and position of the cut 55 to make two similar sheets for two trees or two or more sets of branches for each length of a single tree.

In FIG. 8 the step-like line of cut 56 comprises sections 60a parallel to the side edges of the sheet joined by lines perpendicular to said edges. The line sections 6011 extend over the desired number of pockets to provide space for the required number of branches of each length. The thus cut sheet makes it unnecessary to count the branches inserted into a suitable container as 57 when the three is originally packed for shipment or disassembled for storage.

As shown in FIG. 9 the sheet is severed at the vertical sections 60 of the 'line of cut 56 so as to segregate the sets 61, 62 and 63 of branches of each length, thus making it certain that the count is accurate when the pockets are all filled. If desired, the filled or empty sheet need not be cut apart, but may retain its full original length and when packed may simply be rolled up for insertion into the shipping carton or other container 57.

For ease in inserting the branch of the proper length into the right pocket, the edge of the sheet is sprayed or otherwise suitably marked with indicia 64 such as an identifying colored paint, the projecting end parts of the core rods 35 being similarly marked with corresponding indicia. The sheet edge and rod ends may be simultaneously colored as with red for short lengths when the sheet is fully packed, or so marked in advance of packing asmay be found convenient. The intermediate lengths are marked with a different color and the longest with still another color.

It will be noted that the spacing between peaks and that between troughs is substantially less than the length of a fringe finger of the branch whereby each finger is held and constrained on at least two spaced apart areas while other parts of most of the fingers are out of contact with the sheet material. The compacting stresses on the fingers is thereby minimized with a minimum of permanent distortion of the fingers. Furthermore, the peaks nest with the troughs in the package and each set of pockets reinforces and contacts with the adjacent set so as to cushion shocks received in transit.

It will therefore be seen that an inexpensive though efiicient sheet and package have been provided, well adapted for the shipment and storage of fragile articles such as tree branches and that the various objects of the invention have been adequately attained.

While certain specific forms of the invention have herein been shown and described, various obvious changes may be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention defined by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A slitted and accordion pleated sheet having lines of parallel folds therein and having a row of a multiplicity of slits extending across selected folds, the slits extending toward the adjacent other folds on each side of the selected fold, each line of said selected folds being discontinuous and broken into two alternating oppositely extending short folds reaching between adjacent slits in the row, one of said sets being creased in one direction and the other set being creased in the opposite direction.

2. The slitted and accordion pleated sheet of claim 1, the overall laterally extending dimension of the sheet resulting from folding the sheet at said folds and measured between the apices of a pair of adjacent short folds of a row, being not less than the length of the slit.

3. The slitted and accordion pleated sheet of claim 1, the end of each slit in a row being spaced from the end of the adjacent slit in the adjacent row to provide a relatively narrow band of unsevered sheet material therebetween of sufficient area to withstand the stresses of use of the sheet as a holder.

4. A slitted and accordion pleated sheet having a first set of lines of parallel folds therein and having a row of slits extending across each of the folds of the set to form a row of bands, a second set of lines of folds intermediate of and alternating with the fold lines of the first set, the slits extending from the first lines of folds toward the fold lines of the second set in each row, the corresponding ends of the slits being in alignment and coplanar, said second set of fold lines being substantially unslitted, each of said fold lines of the first set comprising alternating oppositely and laterally directed short folds extending between each pair of adjacent slits, alternate bands in each row outstanding in opposite directions laterally of the general plane of the sheet, thereby to provide spaces between and extending laterally and longitudinally of the short folds of each row, the spaces communicating with each other to form an elongated passage open at both ends and open at predetermined intervals at the top and bottom thereof between said ends for the reception and exposure of spaced apart parts of an article when the sheet is partly unfolded.

5. A slitted and pleated sheet of a single thickness of material having folds forming pleats therein, means for providing a pocket in a pleat for the reception of an article to be held by the sheet at spaced apart circumferential areas at the upper and lower halves of the article, said means comprising a row of slits across and shredding a selected pleating fold and pleat, the corresponding ends of the slits being aligned with each other to form a row of a multiplicity of coextensive creased bands in the row and those selected bands between adjacent pairs of slits in the row being reversed in direction relatively to the remaining bands in the row thereby to predispose said remaining bands to stand out laterally from the sheet in the opposite direction from that of the first mentioned bands.

6. The sheet of claim 5, the outstanding selected bands constituting creased peaks, said remaining bands constituting creased troughs when the sheet is partly unfolded about said folds, the folds constituting the apices of the peaks and the troughs, the sheet being flexible whereby the peaks and troughs distend under the pressure of an article inserted into the pocket therebetween, and the sides of the peaks fold upon each other and the sides of the troughs fold upon each other when the sheet is folded completely into the most compact state thereof.

7. A slitted and accordion pleated sheet folded to form first, second and third lines of folds, the first fold lines extending in the same direction, the sheet having a multiplicity of parallel transverse slits therein arranged in longitudinal rows between the first fold lines, the alternate areas of material constituting selected bands between pairs of slits in each row being creased to form the second short line of folds extending in the same direction as the first line of folds and the remaining bands in each row being creased to form the third short line of folds extending in the opposite direction, said areas in each row being in sufficient spaced relation to each other when the sheet is unfolded from a fully to a partly folded state to form a continuous pocket.

8. The slitted sheet of claim 7, each slit of a row being in alignment with and spaced from the adjacent slit of the rows on each side thereof, and alternating bands in each row outstanding in opposite directions from the initial plane of the sheet to provide communicating articlereceiving spaces between the areas.

9. The combination with the sheet of claim of the branch of an artificial Christmas tree arranged in the pocket of each row, said branch comprising a core rod and a resilient foil fringe wound helically about the rod and having outstanding fingers imitating tree needles, the needles being compacted about the core by said pleats of the sheet at points spaced apart a distance less than the length of the needles, the needles being exposed to view between said pleats whereby the positions thereof in said spaces are observable.

10. The combination of claim 9, the sheet having rows of different lengths, the branches being of different lengths corresponding to the lengths of said rows.

11. The combination of claim 9, and identifying indicia on the rod and the sheet designating the rod for which the sheet is fitted.

12. A package for the shipment and storage of a predetermined number of Christmas tree branches in sets of different lengths and of predetermined numbers of branches comprising the branch-holding sheet of claim 5 having a predetermined number of sets of pockets and a predetermined number of pockets in each set, the sets of pockets differing in length and receiving in each of the pockets thereof a branch of an artificial Christmas tree of a corresponding length, each branch comprising an elongated core rod and a resilient fringe wound around the rod and having outstanding fingers, the fingers being compacted by the areas of said sheet forming said pockets, matching indicia for each set of pockets and on the exposed end of the core rod to designate the branches which fit into the individual pockets of each set of pockets, the indicia differing for the different sets, and a container for the branch-holding sheet.

13. The package of claim 12, the different sets of pockets and branches therein being segregated in rows in the container, whereby the number of branches of each set of branches is predetermined and the total number of branches in the package is accurately determined without the necessity for a count thereof.

14. A package for artificial Christmas tree branches comprising a container, the expanded sheet of claim 5 within the container, said sheet being of a predetermined overall width and partly unfolded and having a predetermined number of branch-receiving pockets therein and a branch having compacted flexible fingers in each of the pockets whereby the exact number of branches in the container is automatically predetermined on the insertion of the filled sheet into the container.

15. A sheet of foldable material folded in zig-zag fashion and thereby having a multiplicity of pleats therein, each of the pleats being shredded by a multiplicity of slits thereacross and aligned in a row along the length of the pleat, the row extending from one side edge of the sheet to the other side edge thereof, the slits crossshredding the pleat into a multiplicity of bands having each set of the corresponding ends thereof aligned in a row along the pleat, each of a numberof selected bands in the row being creased thereacross in one direction and the other remaining bands in the row being creased thereacross in the opposite direction.

16. The sheet of claim 15, the row of slits in the shredded pleat being in staggered relation to the rows of slits in the adjacent pleats.

17. The sheet of claim 15, the creases in said bands enabling the selected bands to stand out laterally from the general plane of the sheet in one direction and enabling the remaining bands to stand out from said plane in the opposite direction, said bands, when standing out from said plane, forming spaced apart sections of pocket halves along the row providing a passage for the reception of an elongated article, the creases and pleats enabling each of the bands to fold on itself when the sheet is folded to close the pleats.

References Cited by the Examiner FOREIGN PATENTS 1,120,678 4/1956 France. 1,203,961 8/1959 France.

659,660 5/1938 Germany.

LOUIS G. MANCENE, Primary Examiner. 

1. A SLITTED AND ACCORDION PLEATED SHEET HAVING LINES OF PARALLEL FOLDS THEREIN AND HAVING A ROW OF A MULTIPLICITY OF SLITS EXTENDING ACROSS SELECTED FOLDS, THE SLITS EXTENDING TOWARD THE ADJACENT OTHER FOLDS ON EACH SIDE OF THE SELECTED FOLD, EACH LINE OF SAID SELECTED FOLDS BEING DISCONTINUOUS AND BROKEN INTO TWO ALTERNATING OPPOSITELY EXTENDING SHORT FOLDS REACHING BETWEEN ADJACENT SLITS IN THE ROW, ONE OF SAID SETS BEING CREASED IN ONE DIRECTION AND THE OTHER SET BEING CREASED IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION. 